Contemporary Collector members were invited to Aspex Gallery in Portsmouth for a tour of their new exhibition Acquire, showcasing the work of twelve locally-based artists. Participating artists include Laura Bennett, Katayoun Dowlatshahi, Jeannie Driver, Peter Lloyd, Sarah Macrae, James Mclellan, Greg Palmer, Sue Paraskeva, Ann Richards, Fran Richardson, Andrea Stokes, Sadie Tierny.

Exhibiting artists joined members for a lunch hosted by Aspex, before we moved onto Artspace to visit the studios of Greg Palmer, Andrea Stokes, Jeannie Driver and Katayoun Dowlatshahi for a more in-depth look at their works and practice.

The Contemporary Art Society invited Contemporary Collectors members on a two-day visit to see two exciting new contemporary art events being launched this year: ATM08 (Asian Triennial Manchester 2008) and Tatton Park Biennial in Cheshire.

The inaugural ATM Programme echoed Manchester’s strong political and social history, reflecting new artistic practice and seeking resonances between Manchester and Asia, by exploring the notion of ‘protest’ in its widest sense. The theme of protest is being used as a starting point for a wide variety of new commissions and the selection of work by artists, from a range of Asian countries.

The CAS programme included viewings of the ATM08 exhibitions and visits to the studios of Manchester-based artists David Mackintosh, Andrew McDonald, Magnus Quaife and Pat Flynn, to consider how the presence of such a large Asian community in the heart of the UK has influenced the local contemporary art scene over the past years. The first day closed with dinner with Shisha Director, Alnoor Mitha.

On t he second day of this visit to the North West of England, we travelled to Tatton Park, for the first Tatton Park Biennial, curated by Dannielle Arnaud and Jordan Kaplan of Parabola commissioning agency. Home to the Egerton family until 1958 when it was left to the National Trust, Tatton Park is set in extensive gardens and parklands and the 2008 Biennial theme is Botanical Collections and Collectors.

Over 30 artists, performers and writers were commissioned to make new works in response to Tatton Park’s gardens, investigating the legacy of collections, collectors and the designed landscape amid current issues of climate change and globalisation.  On a tour of the Biennial led by Danielle Arnaud, members saw new works by artists including Gayle Chong Kwan (ARTfutures 2007), David Cotterrell, Nicky Coutts, Heather and Ivan Morison (ARTfutures 2007 and 2008), Jacque Nimki and  Paulette Philips.

Art Basel featured nearly 200 leading galleries exhibiting works from over 2000 artists, ranging from the great masters of Modern art to the latest generation of emerging stars.  The exhibition includes paintings, sculptures, drawings, installations, photographs, video and editioned works. London based galleries showing works include The Approach, Sadie Coles, Stephen Friedman, Frith Street, Greengrassi, The Lisson Gallery, Anthony Reynolds and Timothy Taylor Gallery.

Contemporary Collector members are invited to hear Massimo Bartolini in conversation with Contemporary Art Society about his forthcoming exhibition and his performances at Frith Street Gallery. Massimo Bartolini’s work embraces various materials and techniques, from sculpture and performance to photography. His works include an elevated floor creating an impression of distorted space; an installation in which a device on the heel of a visitor’s shoe alters the light of the exhibition space; and rooms suffused with perfume and the sound of leaking water. These often sensual artworks induce in the viewer a meditative state that is still highly experimental, making us reflect on the relativity of what is stable and unchangeable. Massimo Bartolini has had recent solo shows at MAXXI, Rome and Ikon Gallery, Birmingham.

The Contemporary Art Society is delighted to be working with Manchester-based artist-led gallery International 3 in the Rotate series, a new exhibition programme at Emerald Street showcasing the work of artists, artist-run spaces and galleries attracting critical acclaim nationally and internationally. International 3 is co-directed by Paulette Terry Brien and Lawrence Lane who have a fifteen year history of working together on initiatives dedicated to commissioning, exhibiting and profiling contemporary art. Rotate is open from Monday 28 April – Friday 29 August, 9:30am–5:30pm (please bear in mind there is no lift to the 2nd floor of the CAS offices).

Visitors to this years Armory Show 2008, The International Fair of New Art, will experience the work of 2,000 international artists, much of the work coming straight from the artists studios and will only be on display for the five-day event. Fifteen galleries making their debut this year include Juliette Jongma from Amsterdam, Nogueras Blanchard from Barcelona and i8 from Reykjavik.

In honour of its tenth year, The Armory Show has commissioned artists John Waters and Mary Heilman to collaborate on the visual identity of the fair and to produce prints to benefit charities commemorating two of its late founders, Pat Hearn and Colin de Land.

This year’s Artfutures, led by curator Jeni Walwin and artist Nicky Hirst involved 20 internationally renowned artists in the nomination of artists for inclusion in the show and brought together recognisable names and new talent in a uniquely selected exhibition.

Charles Avery presents sculpture and prints from his Island series – an ongoing body of work from the past 3 years which has gained national and international attention, especially since the exhibition at the Scottish Pavilion in Venice in 2007.

Artist duo Beagles and Ramsey continue their exploration of the self-portrait with a glamorous series of photographic works featuring themselves as powdered fops sinking into a desert of glitter. Ruth Claxton sold out last year at ARTfutures and has since had a solo show at Spike Island in Bristol with forthcoming solo show at Ikon Gallery, Birmingham. Ruth continues to explore the character of found images and objects, developing them in a celebratory way, bringing exuberance to the surface of the apparently mundane in ceramics and glass.

From artist nominator Zineb Sedira comes Uriel Orlow, a Swiss artists working in London. His work was featured in the survey show ‘Around the world in 80 days’ a joint presentation by the South London Gallery and ICA. His video ‘Concert’ has also been exhibited in Switzerland to great acclaim featuring a cellist and pianist performing Shostakovitch in concert without their instruments.

All members were invited to the private view on Wednesday 5 March 2008.

Collecting Contemporary Art: An Insight from Artists

The Contemporary Art Society and ArtInsight are pleased to invite you to a one-day workshop to coincide with ARTfutures 2008.

Exploring the unique way in which artists engage with contemporary art, and how artistic insight can influence emerging trends and inform collecting as a specific mode of engagement. This one-day workshop presents a programme of presentations and interactive discussionswith artists, curators and contemporary collecting specialists.

Date: Saturday, March 8th 2008
Time: 10:30am - 6:00pm
Location: UBS, 1 Finsbury Avenue, London EC2M 2PP
Fee: £295 incl VAT (10% discount for CAS members)
Executive lunch, refreshments & champagne reception included.

Two In-depth Interactive Discussion Panels with ARTfutures Artists
Panel Discussion on Artists’ Networks & Collecting

Key Speakers will include:

- Sir Christopher Mallaby  (UBS Senior Art Advisor)

- Paulette Terry Brien & Laurence Lane  (Directors of The International 3)

- Valeria Napoleone  (Private Collector)

- Zineb Sedira  (Artist)

- Uriel Orlow  (Artist)

- Nicky Hirst  (Artist / Co-Curator ARTfutures 2008)

- Jeni Walwin (Independent Curator and Writer / Co-Curator ARTfutures 2008)

- Paul Hobson  (Director of the Contemporary Art Society)

All participants also received:
An Invitation for two to the Chairman’s VIP Champagne Reception & Artists’ Party at ARTfutures 2008 on Monday, March 10th
An intimate curator-led tour of ARTfutures 2008 with highlights of the art on show
Gratis copies of  the newly published Life is More Important than Art, edited by Gilane Tawadros with an introduction by Paul Hobson
Complimentary copies of Art World magazine

To download workshop details as a pdf click here

We were delighted that Artists Anonymous accepted our invitation to launch a new art programme Rotate at our Emerald Street offices, showcasing the work of artists, artist-run spaces and galleries who are attracting critical interest and acclaim nationally and internationally.

Founded in 2001, Artists Anonymous are a collective group of five artists who live and work in London and Berlin. Their multi-disciplinary practice is a combination of painting, photography, performance, installation and video dealing with issues of war, famine, sex, drugs, the history of painting and rock 'n' roll. Their work is generating great interest from collectors and curators alike with the Deutsche Bank Collection showcasing their work in their VIP Lounge at Frieze Art Fair 2007 and recent exhibitions at Kunstsalon, Berlin and V22, London.

For more information please visit their website: http://www.artists-anonymous.net

The Contemporary Art Society offices are open for the public to view the work in office hours (Monday - Friday, 10-5.30pm). Please note that there is limited access to the office - for further information please call 020 7831 1243.

As a very special offer 5 members are invited to join Art Rotterdam for their Special Reception Programme combined with a two-night stay at the Hilton Rotterdam. The programme includes an invitation to the preview, artist tours, lectures by renowned art historians, tours, a concert, a boat trip and evening entertainment including Party Art Rotterdam at the fair.

Also on offer are VIP Passes, which include the private view on Wednesday 6 February 2008 and admit two people. If members would like to attend the party on Friday then invitation cards can be picked up at the information desk at the fair.

Art Rotterdam is held in the unique setting of the old cruise terminal in the docklands and this year boasts new galleries including Mothers Tankstation, Rokeby and Eva Winkeler.

‘I’m interested in the notion of ‘geological time’ – a vast span of time difficult to comprehend, in relation to ‘human time’ - Katie Paterson

Recently graduated from Slade School of Fine Art 2007, Katie Paterson has shown at Zoo Art Fair 2007 and has a forthcoming solo show at Modern Art Oxford in April 2008 as well as contributing to ARTfutures 2008. At ROOM Paterson presents films of ‘ice records’ cast from water brought back from melting icebergs in Iceland on three turntables, which play the haunting sounds of the thawing glaciers amidst a dissolving record landscape.

For more information about this exhibition please contact Sandie Macrae by email sandie.macrae@netgates.co.uk or call 020 7613 2636.

As more and more artists engage with the moving image as a vital element in their practice, there is a corresponding interest from museums and galleries wishing to commission and collect work in New Media. The Contemporary Art Society recognises that guidance about commissioning and acquiring, displaying and maintaining this form of work is becoming more urgent. This event is an opportunity to look at these issues more closely as we engage with a range of organisations that specialise in the moving image.

This was a Professional Development event - if you would like to become a Professional Development member please contact Lucy Bayley, National Programmes Coordinator, by email lucy@contempart.org.uk or call 020 7831 3221.

Private View Date: Tuesday 15 January 2008
Time: VIP Preview 4:00pm-6:00pm, Preview Evening 6:00pm-9:00pm
Place: Business Design Centre, 52 Upper Street, Islington, London, N1 0QH

Celebrating its twentieth year, London Art Fair featured over 100 leading galleries showing Modern British and International Contemporary Art. The fair boasted 21 curated displays as part of the Art Projects section with galleries from the UK, Ireland, France, Switzerland and the Netherlands showing work that encompassed photography, drawing, sculpture, contemporary painting and an extensive video programme. Accommodating every level of collector and presenting opportunities to buy across the spectrum of the art market, the pass gave visitors unlimited access to London Art Fair and exclusive use of the VIP Collectors Lounge. Amongst others displaying works at the fair are Boo Ritson, David Mach and Gavin Turk who have all shown works at the Contemporary Art Society's ARTfutures in recent years.

Contemporary Collector members received VIP passes to the London Art Fair 2008 valid for two people.

We were delighted that Artists Anonymous accepted our invitation to launch a new art programme at our Emerald Street offices showcasing the work of artists, artist-run spaces and galleries who are attracting critical interest and acclaim nationally and internationally.

Contemporary Collector members were invited to join us at the Contemporary Art Society offices for a Christmas drink, to see the exhibition and to hear Artists Anonymous talk about their work. 

Founded in 2001, Artists Anonymous are a collective group of five artists who live and work in London and Berlin. Their multi-disciplinary practice is a combination of painting, photography, performance, installation and video dealing with issues of war, famine, sex, drugs, the history of painting and rock 'n' roll. Their work is generating great interest from collectors and curators alike with the Deutsche Bank Collection showcasing their work in their VIP Lounge at Frieze Art Fair 2007 and recent exhibitions at Kunstsalon, Berlin and V22, London.

Forthcoming shows for Artists Anonymous include Haunch of Venison, Zurich in January 2008.  For more information please visit their website: http://www.artists-anonymous.net

Combine a visit to the recently opened Rivington Place with an opportunity to hear Contemporary Art Society Chairman, Alison Myners, and Director, Paul Hobson, review the past year and speak about plans for the future. 

Rivington Place, home to Iniva and Autograph ABP, is a new visual arts space dedicated to work by artists from different cultural backgrounds.  The building houses exhibition and installation spaces, a seminar and screening space, research library, multimedia facility, photography archive, learning space, meeting room, workspaces and a café/bar.  David Adjaye, architect of Rivington Place will be present to talk about the building.

Members will also have the opportunity to see the exhibition London is the Place for Me organised by Iniva and Autograph ABP to mark the launch of Rivington Place.  Looking at migration through photography and moving image, the exhibition explores the presence of many different diasporic communities living in Britain today. 

To book for the AGM please RSVP to Silvia or Hayley by email membership@contempart.org.uk or call 020 7831 3218/9 before Monday 5 November 2007.

The Crafts Council invited Contemporary Collectors to a private view of Out of the Ordinary: Spectacular Craft, an exhibition that brought together eight international artists from the UK, America, Nigeria, China and Japan, at the V&A.  The exhibition comprised of beautifully crafted installations where the artists have used traditional techniques in unexpected ways including marquetry, wood carving, lace-making and embroidery.

Curator of the exhibition Laurie Britton Newell said ‘Out of the Ordinary explores the exceptional skill and meticulous making in the work of these artists. Craft is fundamental to many creative disciplines and this exhibition will show how extraordinary craft can be.’ The artists participating in the exhibition were Olu Amoda, Annie Cattrell, Susan Collis, Naomi Filmer, Lu Shengzhong, Yoshihiro Suda, Anne Wilson and Catherine Bertola.

Contemporary Collectors are invited to join members of the Contemporary Art Society’s new Professional Development Programme during their first regional event as they explore the diversity of commissioning processes taking place in the North East.

Hosted by the Arts Council North East, Judith King, freelance curator and visual arts consultant, will lead a illustrated discussion about her experiences curating the contemporary art programmes at Belsay Hall Castle and Gardens in Northumberland. Judith will highlight the site-specific commissions that were created for the English Heritage space between 1996 and 2007, including works by Hew Locke and Tilda Swinton, and will also discuss her exciting plans for the Berwick Fellowship Programme. Following the talk we hope you will join the Professional Development Programme members for dinner at the famous McCoys restaurant on the top floor of the Baltic Mill, which boasts the best views of Newcastle.

This talk forms part of Economies of Scale a two-day event for subscribers to the new Professional Development Programme. Please see the newsletter 'News' section for further details on the Professional Development Programme.

Members were invited to join us on a packed trip to Liverpool in October. It included a tour of the Turner Prize at Tate Liverpool, led by Tate Director Christoph Grunenber, studio visits with Leo Fitzmaurice, gallery visits, visits to A Foundation, Opentype and installations by Richard Wilson, Anthony Gormley and Jorge Pardo, and a talk on ‘Collecting and Preserving New Media’ by curator Marta Ruperez and the artist Imogen Stidworthy at FACT. We stayed at the fabulous Malmaison Hotel in Liverpool.

Over champagne and canapés in this new gallery space, artist Ori Gersht talked to Contemporary Collectors members about his latest work and members had the chance to meet and chat to Andrew Mummery and Wolfram Schnelle, Directors of Mummery+Schnelle. In his most recent series of photographs, London-based Israeli artist Gersht has taken the idea of shattering to a visual extreme: the photographs depict flower arrangements based on a nineteenth century painting of flowers by Henri Fantin-Latour, which are captured in the process of exploding.

In 2003, as part of the Special Collections Scheme, the Contemporary Art Society commissioned Gersht to create Untitled, a 3-part installation, audio & series of photographs for Nottingham Museum.  He has recently exhibited at the Victoria and Albert Museum, Photographers Gallery, Noga Contemporary Art, Tel Aviv and in the Art Now series at Tate Britain and was shown at ARTfutures in 2004.

Place: Droit House, Stone Pier, Margate

This was an opportunity to attend the private view of Rag and Bone: New Work by Laura Ford in Margate, which was opened by Paul Hobson, the new Director of Contemporary Art Society.  The exhibition is presented by Turner Contemporary, a new visual arts organisation that has been set up to celebrate JMW Turner's association with Margate. Rag and Bone is presented in collaboration with Houldsworth Gallery, the Contemporary Art Society and The Economist Group. Laura Ford will be exhibiting at the Economist Plaza in December 2007. Houldsworth Gallery organised a special coach fro the trip, and upon arrival members were treated to a cream tea private view.

Contemporary Collectors were invited to explore the extraordinary home and the private collection of Kenny Schachter.

Curator, artist, art dealer, property developer and entrepreneur, Kenny Schachter shares his house with his fashion designer wife and their children. The art collection within is as eclectic as Kenny’s interests and includes works by Vito Acconci, William Pope, Zaha Hadid, the Campana Brothers, Richard Woods, Keith Tyson, Franz West, Chris Burden and many more. Kenny Schachter’s ROVE gallery started life as ConTEMPorary in New York’s Greenwich Village. Since relocating to London, Schachter has continued to present shows drawing on an international selection of visual artists, designers and architects. As well as viewing the collection members will be shown the unusual architectural interventions commissioned by Kenny Schachter from AB Rogers design in partnership with Shona Kitchen.

During this special evening, Contemporary Collectors were offered the very first opportunity not only to see and buy the portfolio (an edition of 25) but also to meet some of the artists who have been involved in creating it. Matt’s Gallery generously offered Contemporary Collectors a 5% discount on the night.

Since 1979, Matt's Gallery has existed to support artists with the space and time to take risks, test their limits and surprise even their own intentions. As Richard Dorment wrote in The Daily Telegraph, 27 June 2006, "Robin Klassnik, (is) one of those rare figures in the art world who relishes risk and runs his gallery not for profit but for the benefit of his artists." For the first time, Matt’s Gallery is collaborating with 15 artists (most of whom have exhibited at the gallery) to produce a limited edition print portfolio, and they have invited Contemporary Collectors to be the first to view the portfolio, before its public launch.

The artists who have contributed works are: Jo Bruton, Fiona Crisp, Willie Doherty, Jimmie Durham, Susan Hiller, Melanie Jackson, Nathaniel Mellors, Mike Nelson, Avis Newman, Hayley Newman, David Osbaldeston, John Riddy, Matthew Tickle, Suzanne Treister and Alison Turnbull.

Contemporary Art Society has VIP passes to the Lyon Biennale available for members.

‘The 00s’: “Their ambition is clear: to open the century and name the decade, but with humour.”

As the official Biennale in France since its creation in 1991, the Lyon Biennale has always sought to focus on individual artists and the thematic links between them.  This year Theirry Raspail, Artistic Director has formed the Biennale into a history book. He has invited 66 participants, who will be divided into two groups.  In the first group are 49 critics and curators who will try to answer the question, “Who in your opinion is the artist who best represents this decade?”. In the second group 17 artists will devise a programme to define the current decade in progress.  The Biennale is housed in La Sucrière, a converted 1930s warehouse and has an extensive programme of talks and events. www.biennale-de-lyon.org

For the preview of ART FORUM BERLIN on the Friday 28 and on the Saturday 29 September we have a limited number of VIP passes available for members.

Now in its 12th year, ART FORUM BERLIN 2007 will see work by over 1500 artists from 130 galleries across the world. Collectors, trade visitors and art lovers will find an overview of the latest trends in Berlin with work by both established and emerging artists. This year ART FORUM BERLIN’s infamous experimental displays and lounge designs will be appropriately housed in a 1950s exhibition hall.  Alongside the exhibits ART FORUM BERLIN has a packed events schedule with two talks every day by leading curators and critics. www.art-forum-berlin.com

Date: Thursday 12 July 2007

Place: Notting Hill
Time: 7-9pm               
Cost: Free to CAS Members

Would you like to peek inside Someone Else’s House? A house that has been emptied of its possessions always holds traces of its owners. Imagine if you could see these remaining memories through an artist’s eye. When Patricia Chi found this Edwardian Notting Hill home she could instantly see it’s potential to inspire artists with its mirrored rooms and hand-painted chinoiserie wallpaper. Patricia Chi invited nine artists including Lucy Gunning, Akiko & Masako Takada, and Mat Collishaw to reflect, respond and interpret this eccentric shell of a home. The end result is a unique mix of site-specific contemporary photography, video art, and sculptural installations set against a personally historic and strangely nostalgic setting. On a summer’s evening CAS members were invited to wander round the exhibits hosted by Patricia Chi.

Date: Saturday 30 June 2007
Time: 11am-5pm
Place: Sudeley Castle, Gloucestershire
Cost: Free to CAS members

Reconstruction #2 offered a chance to see specially commissioned outdoor sculptures by international artists in the beautiful setting of the gardens and grounds of Sudeley Castle, the family home of the Dent-Brocklehursts and Lord and Lady Ashcombe.

The curators of Reconstruction #2, Mollie Dent-Brocklehurst, (Director of the Gagosian Gallery) and Elliott McDonald (Curator of the Hiscox Collection) invited Contemporary Collectors members to visit Reconstruction #2 and have lunch with them and other collectors. The proposal of Reconstruction #2 was something different, something more. Installing contemporary art in historically charged spaces, Reconstruction #2 seeked to challenge dominant interpretations of the castle, mansion and garden. As in previous years, artists will interpret their ideas, style and imagination for a comprehensive and eye-catching exhibition. Reconstruction #2 included Roman Signer, Carlos Amorales, Keith Tyson, Vito Acconci and others.

Date:      15-20 June 2007
Place:      Kassel and Münster, Germany

Contemporary Collectors members took part in a six-day trip to attend the Documenta 12 opening and to visit the Skulptur Projekte Münster. Documenta, arguably one of the most important exhibitions in the contemporary art calendar,  takes place every five years when a new artistic director is selected to ‘reinvent the exhibition.’  For documenta 12, Artistic Director Roger M. Buergel, together with art historian, Ruth Noack, as Curator, have formulated three leitmotifs called ‘three questions for art and its audience’. They are: ’Modernity? Is Modernity our antiquity?’, ‘Life! What is bare life?’, and ‘Education: What is to be done?’  The Director and Curator acknowledge that these questions ‘will not receive direct answers at the exhibition – they will, however, receive many indirect ones.’ 

Sculptur Projekte Münster only takes place once every ten years, and invites artists from all over the world to present works which consider the relationship of art, public space and the urban context.  Curated by Kasper König of Museum Ludwig, Cologne and Brigitte Franzen of Westfällisches Landesmuseum, Münster, Sculpture Projekte Münster has invited 35 artists including Michael Asher, Isa Genzken, Dominique Gonzalez-Foerster, Mike Kelly, Deimantas Narkevicius and Susan Philips to participate in the exhibition. Their works and others will be shown in public spaces throughout the town of Münster. The Contemporary Collectors trip included entrance to the exhibitions in Kassel and Münster, hotel accomodation, transport (ex Düsseldorf) and some meals.

Following the success of the video-art event for Contemporary Collectors members at Jean-Conrad and Isabelle Lemaitre’s home we were delighted to offer our members a limited number of VIP invitations to Loop 2007.

Loop is a festival exclusively dedicated to video art. Between the 31 May and 2 June 2007 Barcelona became a meeting place for the latest creations of nearly 400 international artists working in that medium. During this time, video art was exhibited in the city's bars, cinemas, design schools, cultural institutes and even shops.

We were delighted to offer invitations to a VIP dinner celebrating the opening of this year’s fair on Thursday 31 May, as well as two nights hotel accommodation free of cost for a limited number of Contemporary Collectors members.